While electromagnetically driven shutters are known in the art they have heretofore been of relatively large dimensions requiring a great deal of space and their use has therefore been limited to magnifying and reproduction devices. Such shutters have not been used in cameras of the amateur and professional standard types for the reason that the size of the housing for such shutter is limited and not adapted to readily accommodate an electromagnet with a capacity ensuring relatively short focusing times as, for example, for 1/100 of a second with the aperture being held within desired and acceptable limits.
Furthermore, a smaller electromagnet adapted to be built into a camera of the aforementioned standard amateur and professional models was not able to perform its desired functions for the reason that not only is it required to act against the mass of segments or blades of the shutter to be accelerated when advancing the anchor and against the return spring tending to close the shutter blades, but in addition it must overcome the frictional stresses which normally occur and bind the connecting links between the anchor and the segment or blade actuator. As a consequence attempts to provide standard or small cameras with an electromagnetic control were not successful.